Public Statements

Statement

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today condemned the Syrian regime's latest civilian massacre and the Obama Administration's failed approach to Syria:

"The latest reports out of Syria of another civilian massacre further bolster the case to stop wasting time with the Annan peace effort and for the United States to lead an effort to stop the bloodshed. The Syrian regime led by Bashar Assad and his enablers are making a mockery out of the international community and every basic norm of human decency as the regime unleashes its military to kill innocent civilians. It was clear months ago that the Administration's reliance on international conferences and UN Security Council agreements to bring an end to the bloodshed was failing and needed to be abandoned. Instead, it has given a chance for Russia and Iran to inordinately increase their influence in Syria and in the region. The United States has been concerned about Syrian stockpiles of WMDs, and reports that the regime is now moving parts of its chemical weapons arsenal out of storage compounds the sense of urgency to act resolutely to keep a desperate Assad from unleashing these on the Syrian people. At the very least, and as I proposed earlier this year, Congress should immediately approve additional sanctions to isolate the Syrian regime and its enablers.

"The Obama Administration needs to stop hiding behind Annan's diplomatic disaster as the way forward in Syria. Its approach is clearly not working. How many people need to die and to how many countries does the violence need to spill into before the United States takes proactive steps to end the bloodshed? The longer this tragedy goes on, the more it weakens America's standing in the world, the less the Syrian people will trust our intentions in the region, the easier it is for individuals and organizations opposed to the United States to gain a foothold in Syria, and the more our friends in the region will be put at risk.

"President Obama's campaign admitted this week that he believes ignoring serious international threats is sometimes the best way to make them go away. This view of the world has had disastrous consequences, and nowhere is this more evident than in Syria."